£8.3 billion funding boost to repair England’s roads
Redirected HS2 funding to resurface more than 5,000 miles of road across the country
THE Government has today announced the biggest-ever road resurfacing programme to improve local roads. Using redirected HS2 funding, Transport Secretary Mark Harper has set out the allocations of an £8.3 billion long-term plan, enough to resurface more than 5,000 miles of road across the country over the next 11 years.
Across England, local highway authorities will receive £150 million this financial year, followed by a further £150 million for 2024/2025, with the rest of the funding allocated through to 2034.
Each local authority can use its share of the £8.3 billion to identify what local roads are in most need of repair and deliver immediate improvements. This is divided as:
£3.3 billion for local authorities in the North West, North East, and Yorkshire and the Humber
£2.2 billion for local authorities in the West Midlands and East Midlands
£2.8 billion for local authorities in the East of England, South East, South West, and, for the first time in eight years, London.
Today’s £8.3 billion nationwide boost comes on top of the £5.5 billion already confirmed up until 2024/25, for England outside London, which includes the £200 million announced by the Chancellor at the Budget in March.
The funding also comes on top of the local transport, road and rail budgets allocated at the last Spending Review and in addition to what local authorities were already expecting for the next decade.
Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, said: ‘For too long politicians have shied away from taking the right long-term decisions…tackling the scourge of potholes being a prime example.
‘This unprecedented £8.3 billion investment will pave the road for better and safer journeys for millions of people across the country and put an end to the blight of nuisance potholes.’
Transport Secretary, Mark Harper, said: ‘Today’s biggest-ever funding uplift for local road improvements is a victory for all road users, who will enjoy smoother, faster, and safer trips – as we use redirected HS2 funding to make the right long-term decisions for a brighter future.’
To increase transparency and ensure the £8.3 billion leads to an increase in the number of roads being resurfaced, local authorities will be required to publish information on their websites on a regular basis explaining how they are spending the funding in their area.
Rick Green, chair of the Asphalt Industry Alliance, said: ‘This additional funding is good news for local authorities in England and is much needed to help them tackle the backlog of repairs.
‘We have long been calling for surety of funding over the long term and the fact that the Department for Transport has committed to this money being available over the next 11 years should allow highways teams to implement more efficient works to improve local road conditions and enhance the resilience of the network once they have details of their allocation.
‘This long-term investment will also help give the asphalt supply chain confidence to further invest in plant upgrades, materials innovation, and technical advancements to support the development and delivery of lower-carbon roads, in line with the government’s net-zero ambitions.’
